Synopsis: Desperate for money to buy Bluth shares back from Lucille 2, Michael pimps out Lindsay to their Fake Uncle Jack; Gob and Buster are concerned that Lucille 2 is seeing someone else

What to watch for:

Callbacks and Recurring Jokes:

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Lucille’s Drinking:

Lucille repeatedly sloshes her martini while making air quotes

George Michael slips in the spillage

Michael explains that Gangy had a little accident, causing George Michael to wonder if that means she’s going to have to come live with them

Tobias also slips and asks if Lucille had been there

Lucille 2’s Vertigo: Lucille, irritated with Gob, leaves for her spin class, leaving him to wonder about her vertigo

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Incest & Inappropriate Relationships:

Michael suggests that he and George Michael do the items in the date basket; George Michael asks about the Kama Sutra oil in the basket

George Sr. reveals that Lucille slept with Fake Uncle Jack to pay for George Sr.’s first plot of land

The narrator repeatedly reminds us that Fake Uncle Jack is not the family’s real uncle

Fake Uncle Jack makes inappropriate overtures to Lindsay

Michael agrees to pimp out Lindsay to Fake Uncle Jack in exchange for money for the company

George Sr. is furious Michael is pimping out his sister; Michael counters that George Sr. was pimping out Michael’s mother, but George Sr. responds that he only did so because she is sleeping with his brother

Tobias finds a jar of butterscotch body lotion in the basket and offers to Michael, “Butterscotch! Want a lick?”

Tobias tells Michael that Jeff, the horse guy at the hotel, doubts a lady will be joining him on the date

Jeff flinches when Tobias reaches for him

Michael goes on the date with Tobias, making Tobias complain that, “Well, you certainly didn’t help my reputation as a ladies man with Jeff. But we’ll clear all that up in the spa when I get my facial.”

Tobias pats Michael’s butt to make the horse go faster

Tobias offers Michael body chocolate in the hot tub

Michael says that he used the word “afraid” when in the jacuzzi with Tobias, and Tobias complains “I apologized for that, I thought it was a pool toy”

Tobias calls Sitwell, “Miss”

Tobias, taking Michael’s advice, listens to his recorded words and hears

“Even if it means me taking a chubby, I will suck it up”

“I’ve been in the film business for a while, but I just can’t seem to get one in the can”

“I wouldn’t mind kissing that man in between the cheeks, so to speak”

Tobias, after hearing all this, says to himself, “Tobias, you blowhard.”

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Sexual Puns and Malapropisms:

See pretty much everything in “Is Tobias Gay?”

Tobias, in explaining that he tested everything in the date basket before taking Lindsay on the date, says, “I prematurely shot my wad, on what was supposed to be a dry run, if you will. So now I’m afraid I have something of a mess on my hands.”

George Sr. asks Michael to take another Bullet for the Bluth family

Uncle Jack orders Dragon to take him to “the nuts”; Dragon swoops him down to Michael’s scrotum

When Lindsay asks Michael what Uncle Jack said about the money, Michael claims that Fake Uncle Jack would “like to sleep on it”

Buster realizes that Gob was trying “to get into Lucille 2’s robe and slippies”

Synopsis: Michael ruins his relationship with Sally Sitwell when he believes Maggie Lizer is pregnant with his baby; Tobias and Lindsay set out to prove Maggie isn’t pregnant; Buster heads off to war after learning the truth about his father; Gob releases a seal into the wild; George Michael tries to get Egg Ann to dump him

What to watch for:

Callbacks and Recurring Jokes:

arresteddevelopment.wikia.com

Mommy, What Will I Look Like?: Lindsay’s failed business provides a hypothetical image of Michael and Sally Sitwell’s child

Cousin, Maeby: Michael introduces Maeby to Sally as “my niece, Maeby”

Sports Training: As Sally leaves after meeting George Michael, she mentions to Michael that they can try to break their record later, referring to having sex 3 times in a row. Michael explains to George Michael that she’s a shot-putter, similar to Gob explaining to George Michael that a woman leaving the yacht was a hopeful Olympic swimmer he was coaching

George Sr., wearing his God costume, commands Michael to stop Buster from going to Iraq

Ann encourages Lucille to pray

Which she does at the end of the episode, praying that God “take something else from us. Do whatever you have to keep my boy from going to war.” Buster’s hand is eaten by the seal immediately following

Egg Ann:

When George Michael suggests that he and his father double date with Sally and Ann, Michael responds, “Who?”

Michael then corrects himself, “Her?”

Michael when exiting the scene, runs into Ann, and not recognizing her, calls her “Ma’am”

Spinning Chairs:

Gob attempts to spin the living room comfy chair

Lucille spins a patio chair; neither chairs are meant to be spun

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Seals:

Gob’s Wife deals seals (which is a play on the fact that she and Gob never “sealed the deal”) and is suing Gob for releasing her seals

Gob uses one of the seals in his magic act before releasing it into the wild

The wild seal then eats Buster’s hand after he ignore’s a bystander’s warning of a “loose seal” believing the man to have said “Lucille”

Tobias, on hearing about a pregnancy test announces,”There’s something we never had, Lindsay!” before going on to say that they “had to create our little Frankenstein monster out of science and money and just a dash of — “

After testing Maggie Lizer’s urine, Tobias exclaims that he and Lindsay finally had the thrill of seeing a plus sign on a pregnancy test

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Is Tobias Gay?:

Declaring that he and Lindsay will sneak into Maggie’s house, Tobias goes on to say that they’ll “be like Tracy and Hepburn,” and then does a Hepburn impersonation

Tobias wears Maggie’s robe, perfume, cloaking himself in her scent even after being reminded that Maggie isn’t gay

After hiding in Maggie’s shower, Lindsay notes that it was the first time they were in the shower together since their honeymoon, and Tobias adds “and this time, no tears!”

Lindsay finds Tobias trying on Maggie’s pregnancy padding

Zip Me Up: When Lucille complains that all Buster does is push her buttons, Michael reminds her that he also “zips [her] up and sands her elbows”

Buster’s parentage:

Lucille warns Oscar to not tell Buster he’s his father, confirming Buster’s parentage once and for all

However, when George Sr. goes to Buster dressed as Oscar, and tells him that he’s his father, not his uncle, Buster learns the truth

George Sr. concerned about Buster going to Iraq, worries he’ll “never get to reach out and touch that hand again” (ominous Jaws-like music plays)

On the bus bench Buster is sitting on, he covers the Army surplus ad, so that “ARM OFF” is the only thing visible

Seal: The seal can be seen splashing around in the ocean behind Lucille and Buster as they have their pictures taken on the beach (ominous Jaws-like music plays)

Fat Case is Pretty Thin: Maggie Lizer admits to Michael that her “fat case is actually pretty thin,” and we learn that her client is a thin pregnant woman, and has not gotten fat on Skip’s Scrambles at all

Hidden Jokes:

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Restaurant Names:

Skip Church’s Bistro: (where people attend Sunday brunch)

Miss Temples: (where Barry and Saul have dinner every Friday night)

Skip Church’s Disclaimer: “Skip Church’s Bistro is happy to serve its valued customers, however, it is not responsible for medical bills or deformities resulting from the digestion of its menu items.”

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Skip’s Scramble: In the montage of dares that Gob and Gob’s Wife undertook is a shot of them eating the Skip’s Scramble

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Iraq & Bluth Homes: A Bluth Homes sign can be seen in the background of the photo of Gob’s Wife with the prisoner in shopping carts (the shopping carts also mirror the photo of Gob and Gob’s Wife in shopping carts in their dare montage)

Desperate Housewives: Gob uses a “Desperate Housewife” as a diversion during his magic act. Marc Cherry later makes an appearance on the show

Amy, Blamy: When Michael points out that Gob doesn’t know his wife’s first name, Gob replies that when he does learn it, he’ll make a pun out of it, like “Amy, Blamy.” Gob’s Wife is played by Amy Poehler, Will Arnett’s actual wife at the time (sadface here)

Never Nude: When Tobias thinks he hears Lindsay calling his name, he is folding a pair of cut-offs

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Balboa Bay Window Magazine:

“Lucille and Buster Bluth Keepin’ it Fresh!”

“Also: How to Dress For Success”

“Yacht Club presses forward with plans to downsize to rowboats”

“Two Bay Windows!”

“Leprechaun Impersonators Visit Balboa Towers”

“Once a desert wasteland now an oasis. How the Bluth Company helped millions of Iraqi families. For a second!”

8 1/2 months: A pregnant Maggie Lizer insists that she hasn’t seen Michael in 8 1/2 months, and Michael swears it seemed like a year. In actuality, it had been 11 1/2 months between this episode and “Justice is Blind.” (March 21, 2004 – March 6, 2005)

Synopsis: Buster loses his left hand to a seal wearing a yellow bow tie that Gob had released into the wild; Michael tries to figure out who the father of Maggie Lizer’s baby is; Gob attempts to retrieve Buster’s hand

What to watch for:

Callbacks and Recurring Jokes:

Her?: When Michael explains to George Michael that he reconnected with Maggie Lizer, George Michael responds, “Her?”

Little Adventure: Michael keeps insisting to George Michael throughout the episode that they are going to have a “little adventure,” this usually turns out horrifyingly for George Michael:

Michael firsts tells George Michael that they will have fun that day, maybe even “a little adventure” after telling George Michael about Maggie Lizer’s baby

When Lindsay refuses to break into Maggie’s house again, Michael assures her that he will find someone who’s up for an adventure, and goes to rescue George Michael from Buster

At Maggie’s House, Michael explains that they are having another “Bluth Boy adventure” before trying to send George Michael to break into a house with a cop with a drawn weapon waiting inside

Michael then orders George Michael to “enjoy the adventure from the car” when he goes to investigate the address of the phone number

At the hospital, Michael says to George Michael, “Some adventure, huh? Can’t say we’re not having fun,” before he leaves to check on Maggie. George Michael is then confronted by a sick man with a bandage on his throat who warns George Michael, “Don’t smoke, sonny,” and left in the waiting room with the cops who begin making out

George Michael tells his father that this was as much adventure as he’s ever needed, right before Michael puts George Michael on the hospital elevator, presses “M” for “main floor” (“No adventure there!”) and inadvertently sends George Michael to the morgue

Lucille’s Scream: When he answers the phone to Lucille screaming, Michael tells his mother she has to stop starting conversations that way, as she did in “Afternoon Delight”

Missing Hand:

Lucille calls Michael to tell him that Buster’s lost some part of his body, she doesn’t know which one, just as she drives through a sign’s hand, and Oscar calls out, “The hand!”

The car dealership’s inflatable dancing thing’s left arm is deflated

When Michael tells Buster that his hat is off to him, Buster replies “And my hand is off to you”

Buster insists that Michael ask Maggie for her hand, and Michael promises to “get one for [his] brother” while he’s at it. Buster becomes enraged.

Upon returning home, Buster encourages everyone to give him a “big hand,” and reveals his hook to horrified laughter

Gob, in flashback, releases the seal to the ocean and sneers that its “not going to be hand-fed mammal blood anymore”

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Lucille’s a Terrible Driver: Similar to “The hand!” moment above, Lucille laments that God only knows where George Sr. is as she nearly hits another car, and Oscar warns, “The car!” George Sr. is in the car.

Dr. Literal:

Tells the Bluths that Buster is going to be “all right;” means Buster’s lost his left hand

Tells Gob there’s been “no damage;” is only referring to Buster, Gob still has Buster’s hook embedded in his butt

Buster’s Parentage: Buster has lost all memory of the fact Oscar is his father

Juice:

The car salesman explains to George Sr. that Broncos have been discontinued to shed that whole “fugitive on the run” thing in reference to O.J. Simpson (“The Juice”) infamous White Bronco incident

Lucille screams for the hospital to give Buster “the juice” (This is an homage to the Terms of Endearment scene with Shirley MacClaine screaming at the hospital to medicate her daughter)

Buster, upon learning that Gob is responsible for the loose seal, attacks Gob with his hook, plants it in Gob’s butt

I Did This:

Opening with “I did this,” Lucille confesses to Michael that she prayed to God to take something in exchange for Buster not being deployed

Opening with “I did this,” Gob confesses to Michael that he released the seal with the bow tie into the ocean

Red McGibbon and Bullet:

Michael describes George Michael and himself as Fake Uncle Jack’s crime-fighting alter egos

Upon hearing that there was a cop with his gun drawn in the house Michel was encouraging George Michael to break into, Michael replies, “Close call there, Bullet”

Breastfeeding:

To the cop couple, Michael makes a not well-received joke about them having to decide which one is going to breastfeed

Later, Michael, believing that he is handing the cops their new baby, actually gives them Maggie’s latex fat suit, complete with breasts, and one of the cops replies that Michael can’t seem to get over the breastfeeding thing

No Touching: The judge reminds Barry that he’s been warned about touching; Barry corrects him, the judge said “spanking”

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I’m a Monster!: Upon hurting Oscar, Buster cries this out for the first time. Note: It’s an homage to The Best Years of Our Lives, a 1946 film about a trio of servicemen trying to piece their lives back together after the war. One of them, Homer, loses his hands, and utters this phrase.

Michael and Maggie: Like at the end of “Justice is Blind,” Michael and Maggie can’t keep their hands off each other, even after agreeing that it’s a bad idea

Hidden Jokes:

Escape: The escaped George Sr. is driving a Ford “Escape”

Inflatable: The car lot inflatable’s left arm is deflated as a nod to Buster’s missing left hand

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Restaurant Names: Miss Temple’s is featured, mentioned previously in “Out on a Limb”

Someone from Harvard: Maggie explains that the baby’s father is someone from Harvard, and Michael replies that her baby is going to be “some geek Simpson’s writers’ kid”; a number of The Simpson’s writers did go to Harvard, the most famous of whom is Conan O’Brien

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The Young Man and the Beach: The absurdist title for Maeby’s remake of The Old Man and the Sea

Hot Cops: When Michael stops by the cops’ house, a song, “Hot Cops” is playing in the background. This song also plays over the closing credits.